Defenseless
by Rival Argentica
Summary: That knee-weakening smirk and those mesmeric amber eyes—no girl could not fall defenseless for the charm that only a certain hypnotist could ever possess. [A series of one-shots in which Naoi Ayato is paired up with Kanade, Yuri, and Shiina in each]
1. Defenselessly Naïve (NaoiKanade)

**I finished** _ **Angel Beats!**_ **about a short while ago, so, yeah, if it isn't for Naoi-kun I wouldn't even be here. Also, I didn't know that I was actually capable of creating a T-rated fanfic, but here it is—my very first one, which just happens to be a NaoixKanade! After reading all of yours—which happens to be painfully short, I need MORE—I got inspired to write some of my own.**

 **Standard disclaimers apply.**

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Defenselessly Naïve  
a one-shot dedicated to Naoi Ayato and Kanade Tachibana

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It was deep in the night, and the cloudless sky outside was showered over by glimmering dust. The cold night wind gently rustled the small branches of a verdant tree, and the pale light of the silvery moon spilled onto the classroom's gray-tiled floor. The night was peacefully still, the crickets outside providing her something to listen to. A certain Student Council President dutifully tried to finish her paperwork early before the designated deadline, if the busy sound of the ruffling papers was any indication. Seated on the far center of the dark room was a serene, snow-haired girl, golden eyes focused on reading the papers in her full hands.

It was a lot of work when you were an entire school's president.

The quick hours passed on like seconds, and she slowly felt tiredness consume her heavy eyes. She inspected the amount of work she made, and she breathed a sigh of satisfaction. _She was half-done, good._ Yawning with the grace of a royal, she silently stood up to start collecting the mess of papers from the table. A pale, white hand started to reach for the last of the paper bunch, but she stopped mid-reach when three forceful knocks suddenly echoed throughout the room.

Kanade looked up, eyes focused at the door. _Who could it be at this late hour?_

"You may enter."

The door opened with a slight _creak_ , and in stepped a certain olive-haired boy with eyes that glowed like melted ambers afire. The same white hand that was reaching for the last of her papers was suddenly frozen in place, her own yellow orbs overwhelmed, widening at the sight of…of _him_. He was dressed in his usual black overalls, a navy Mao cap lazily placed over his raised head, his long-sleeved uniform hugging a lean torso, the silk cloth of his dark trousers smoothly flowing down his long legs. Both arms professionally placed on his back, he stood with commanding authority that demanded respect _and_ respect only—if his general-class uniform didn't already give it out. Dark green strands of hair fell over his dignified face, and the hat he wore cast shadows onto the yellow eyes that intensely glinted against the dark.

She was staring at him. Unable to look away. She was vaguely aware that she was _staring_ , but she seemed not to care as only the picture of him became focused in her vision, all the others blurring away.

He was…he was actually…he was rather…

… _attractive_.

"Tachibana Kanade."

His voice interrupted her thoughts, and she didn't even realize that he was already handing her the paper she'd been reaching for. She looked up at him, golden eyes meeting a pair of mesmerizing ones. Kanade's face instantly flushed, and, clearing her throat, she snatched the paper from him. She ignored the sparks she felt when her long fingers lightly brushed against his equally slender ones. She immediately turned her back to him, walking over to a cabinet to start arranging the papers; but mostly it was an effort to hide her flushed red face from him.

 _It was nothing_ , she reassured herself, composing her suddenly-wild thoughts. Nothing. She was just…just…

… _just tired._

Unfortunately, the boy wasn't stupid. An idiot, maybe, but not stupid. He was clearly aware of Kanade's actions and reactions, and, loving the idea of playing around with a stubborn girl, a mischievous smirk pulled at his lips. He couldn't help it. It had always been this way whenever he and Kanade discussed matters, conducted meetings, and debated on issues—she would get pulled by his magnetic charm, and then she would immediately try to resist. The fact that her resistance was almost always effective displeased him a little, but he had to be proud of the fact that his gravity was strong enough to pull an incredibly tenacious girl into his sphere of influence, even for just a second. As the peak members of the Student Council, they've always had a strict, professional relationship that never went over the line—but all those secret glances over the shoulder, the times they had to work together, the long walks he and she would have to take from the Student Council Room to the Principal's Office for reports—there had to be _more._ He knew she'd looked at him as more than just a council partner. She would never admit it, he knew, but her denial over her apparent liking of him was what amused him the most.

"N…Naoi A-Ayato." Kanade started, trying to impose upon him a commanding presence—but failed, as her stutter took over her first words. Naoi's smirk only grew, perfectly pleased of himself for having extracted the stutter out of that girl again. He was the only one ever known to have that effect on her, making the high and mighty Tachibana Kanade inferior to him on that one thing.

Kanade was aware of this, so, embarrassed, she shook her head and the redness out of her pale cheeks away. She knelt down in front of the cabinet and opened it, where she started to pile the papers in. This bought her some seconds to form some words she could use to distract the haughty smirk over this insignificant NPC right away.

"It's the middle of the night, and you are still awake." She kept her voice in her usual deadpanned tone, soft yet cold. Being the Student Council President, she had no trouble in stepping over her own embarrassment to stand with authority over the conversation. "Why is this so?"

"I should be the one asking you the questions," he replied matter-of-factly, starting to walk over to her kneeling form. Eyeing the bundle of paperwork she was stuffing inside the cabinet, he added, "You should distribute the labor to the other members of the Council. Those useless rats have nothing to do with their merry little lives." Then, a playful glint flashed through his eyes.

"A girl like you should be resting at this time of the night."

She knew how he played with cards. So she steeled herself, blocking his mischievous words from reaching her brain. She was thankful that she was currently arranging the papers to have something to busy herself with, or else she would've fallen all over his charm. _Words had always been Naoi's expertise_. "Don't flatter me. Explain your purpose."

Naoi stopped walking towards her. A frown replaced his taunting grin, but eventually he gave in to explaining to her his intention. He sighed, and he stood up straighter.

"I have something to report." The impishness was gone, only a cold and detached expression left. "The scampering group led by a certain Yuri Nakamura is currently hosting a party; guests only limited to them. Motives unknown. Venue is suspiciously set at Building C's rooftop, where a monstrous girl band played noise for them."

Kanade's expression remained stoic, yet she was silently exasperated. She closed the cabinet door and put a padlock to seal it; inwardly sighing while standing up. _Monstrous girl band?_ That was Girls Dead Monster alright. No need to be surprised— _it's them again._ Building C is a good place for them to host some sort of a party, she guessed, because it is the most faraway of the buildings from the dorms. But even in this silent night, a loud party—especially with the GirlDeMo—would be impossible not be heard rocking with their music for miles across. Kanade strained her ears to hear faint sounds of electric guitars and rocking bands; Naoi was actually right.

Kanade nodded at him. "Thank you, Ayato. You're dismissed." She started walking towards the door, ignoring the ample scent of cloves that wafted her senses of smell as she passed by him. "I will go and investigate what those guys are up to again."

His frown deepened, and Kanade felt his cold hand pierce her skin when he grabbed her arm to stop her. "I will come with you, Tachibana."

A mild blush tinted her pale cheeks. He was becoming protective—the thing that Kanade almost fell for several times already. She appreciated his offers, really, only she didn't like the idea of him… _protecting_ her. Because did his protectiveness actually… _mean_ something? Just the thought was tempting; wanting her to scream with a passionate _yes!_ But she had to say _no._ Because, as far as she knew, _he_ would be the one who would need the protection, not _her,_ especially if it's _those_ guys. Also, he was just an NPC—basically programmed to say the words he says, to act the movements he does. She had to keep reminding herself that.

But, most of all, she wouldn't be able to _focus_ if he tagged along with her; she wouldn't be able to. Only heaven knows why; but she had to say _no._

Seeing her hesitation, he actually grinned—instantly knowing why this quiet girl even considered refusing: _it's because she didn't want to be uncomfortable around his compulsive presence._ He read right through her—such a transparent little flower. Focusing on the weakness of people around him, that was his expertise. He knew his charm was irresistible, but Kanade, who tried to resist it, is being gullibly _foolish_. He knew that she knew that he _wasn't_ the type who let people alone to themselves and give them their peace; torturing them was more of his style.

He raised his head up a little higher to emphasize the effect of him looking down at her—an indication that _he_ was commanding her this time. That haughty smirk returned to his face. "I insist."

Kanade shook away his hand from her arm, and the warmth that had taken over her body was immediately gone once she lost physical contact with him. "You don't wish to rest already? It's eleven thirty."

Disappointed with her actions of restraints, Naoi instead put both of his arms behind his back to impose firmness of his next words. Releasing a sigh, he closed his eyes to emphasize his 'isn't it too obvious?' voice to purposely make her sound stupid.

"From the reports I've heard and seen, Miss Nakamura and her so called 'Afterlife Battlefront' are a particularly violent group of high school students—even suspected to possess prohibited weapons at their disposal." He lifted his eyelids to reveal the mischief now apparent beneath the hazels. "It would just be proper if I, Student Council Vice President Naoi Ayato, accompanied his defenseless council associate to a potentially dangerous venue."

He looked down at her with that foreboding signature smirk plastered all over his face, waiting for her answer.

 _Defenseless?_ Kanade wanted to chuckle, but restrained herself. She had fought against the SSS countless of times singlehandedly; she had her own advanced weaponry for self-defense to protect herself with. But because this NPC had to be innocent of her abilities, she had to maintain the blankness of her expression. Looking right through the air in front of her, she said with an empty voice, "What is the purpose of this sudden concern, Ayato?"

Naoi saw this as a chance to advance to her. Putting one hand into his pocket, he again started to walk slowly towards her, the soles of his shoes delicately tapping onto the tiled floors of the dark room. "I wouldn't let someone as delicate as a white flower get destroyed by the rain."

She looked up at him, eyes blank and expressionless. "I don't need your protection."

There was a trace of a mocking laugh tinting his low voice. "A silly little girl has no chance of winning against a group whose members include a heavily-trained judo oaf and an ax-wielding idiot," he bluntly said, respectively referring to Matsushita and Noda. "And those are only the one of the most blockheaded of them all."

Kanade had the grace to release a tiny scoff. "Ayato, _I_ might be the one who would need to protect _you_ from them."

An offended eyebrow arched. "Do you really think that lowly of me, Miss Tachibana?"

"Yes."

"You dare defy me?"

She stared up at him, eyes a bland shade of gold. "I'm more capable than what you think you are."

 _Interesting._ "Pardon me? I didn't quite hear."

"You are not capable of defending me," she repeated, eyes staring up at him.

This just encouraged him to think of more ways to play with her. _I'll show her who's defenseless._ He sneered.

"Don't be so sure."

Kanade was just about to push him out of her way and tell him that he was being ridiculous, but, for one, painful little second, she caught sight of his eyes. His eyes… slowly transforming from its glazed, ocher color, to a luscious, malevolent red. The world around her seemed to stop, as her golden eyes widened at an unspoken command to stay fixated at staring into them; the red orbs that she slowly let enter into her mind, gripping it with authority that no one else had ever been able to do before; into a universe where only he and she ever existed. The different sounds resonating across the room—the rustling leaves, the whispering wind, the echoing air—all of those disappeared, replaced by only a strange sound of silence. A silence that hypnotically rang into her ears, weakening her knees and annihilating her sense of consciousness. Against her will, her hands fell to her sides—and, for once in her life, she fell defenseless. Kanade found in herself no strength to resist the sudden gravity he was forcing her to fall into, a hidden intensity that persuaded her to lose contact with the real world.

She looked up at him, her usually blank expression now a mixture of helplessness and lack of control.

"Yes, yes, that's right. Stare right into my eyes," he breathed down at her. Delighted, Naoi took a step further, intending to aggravate the frail little girl by gently tucking a strand of white hair behind her ears; cold fingers leaving icy trails of light touches onto her face. Her face showed mild horrification, and she took a step behind; but stopped, realizing that her back now touched the wall.

"Imagine that you are sand," he commanded, his voice ringing in her ears. "A rock, once upon a time, worn by the storm; the solid toughness turning into the soft fragility of sand, fighting defenselessly against a flood that would carry it away."

Kanade tried to look down and blink her eyes shut, but Naoi managed to force tilting her chin so she would face him.

"Poor Tachibana," he mocked, his chuckles sending flurries through her stomach. "You have to practice defending yourself from me first."

"Ayato," Kanade started, keeping her voice as calm and composed as ever; her voice so quiet it was barely a whisper. She looked up at him, forming the words she knew would be most effective to halting the playful young man. "As Student Council President, I order you to stop."

He scoffed, putting his arms onto the wall on both sides, caging her in. He merely looked down at her, the impishness on his red-eyes the only thing illuminating the shadow that towered over her. His face was only inches away from hers.

"My, my, Tachibana," he taunted, the heat of his breath tingling into her senses. "Unable to defend yourself now, I see."

Kanade wanted to activate her Guard Skills right now—but his alluring effect seemed to block that ability from her. She looked up at him, narrowed her eyes, and produced the words; no matter how much she didn't want to.

"Your point has been taken, then."

A malicious smirk grew on the handsome features of his face. He reached out a hand to finger a strand of her hair, his breath sending sparks onto her cold skin. "I want you," he started, tilting his head from looking at the hair of snow in his hand to focus onto her face. "…to beg me to stop."

Kanade cocked her head to the side, genuinely confused. "I do not see the point behind this, but please show respect to your superiors."

 _Sweet, innocent little Kanade,_ thought Naoi, with a scorn that could insult even the most steel-hearted human being. She was just so pure, so delicately naïve—it made him want to…to…

 _Enough fun_. He closed his eyes, frowned, and released the grip he had on her mind, letting the natural color of his eyes wash over the red glow. Kanade released a held breath as a result, which Naoi had unconsciously forced her to restrain.

He withdrew the arms that had been caging her, and used a hand to adjust the cap on his head. "My position being one step inferior to yours doesn't mean you are superior to me in all things, Tachibana."

Kanade tested her arms as she gained control of them again. "I guess you can prove that when you try defending me against the Battlefield."

Naoi was shaking his head in amusement as he walked towards the door. "That and more, dear President." Now, did naïve little Kanade Tachibana ever think that he was satisfied of proving his superiority by merely acting as her effective bodyguard?

As Kanade approached him outside the door, he offered her his arm; and together, they walked towards Building C to see who the inferior one between the two of them was.

The triumphant hypnotist's grin did not leave his face. _Soon_ , he thought, he was going to prove, not only to Tachibana, but to everyone else, how Naoi Ayato can gain control of this Afterlife world and be its rightful god. Soon.

That…and _more_.

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 **If I get inspired [*cough* reviews *cough*] I will make another one-shot. xD Fact: I already have ideas for a NaoixShiina AND NaoixYuri fanfic, so…stay tuned? I know this isn't worthy of your precious reviews, but please do tell what you think! Flames and encouraging ones always give me the Writer's Rush. (Don't worry, I only invented the term.) Oh, and, guys, time for a New Year's resolution.**

 **NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION: I will train hard enough to become a real writer!**

 **Keeping the beats,  
rivalargentica**


	2. Lovely Defenselessness (NaoiYuri)

**Oh my word thank you guys for the follow/favorites! Love you, lovelies! This one-shot is for you two, you know who you are :3**

 **Along with experimenting scenes where Naoi is paired up with a different girl in each one-shot, I'm also experimenting on writing moods. So this might take up a drastic turn in my usual tragic writing style. While the mood in the last chapter was quite dark, this is one is lightened up by a notch because I thought that Yuri and Naoi would be a comedic goldmine if they ever had a conversation with each other. This is longer too, I hope you don't mind…**

 **I don't own anything—ANYTHING AT ALL—that you recognize whatsoever. It belongs to whoever owns them.**

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Lovely Defenselessness  
a one-shot dedicated to Naoi Ayato and Nakamura Yuri

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"Hey."

Yuri's school shoes ticked against the rooftop floor with every step she made towards him, filling the dark quietness of the cold night. If Naoi noticed her sudden arrival, he didn't give any clue that he had. Yuri stopped walking, just standing right behind the standing form of the black-clothed boy in front of her, his back bluntly facing her. He was just standing there, his hands falling to his sides, letting the cool night breeze ruffle the dark forest underneath his cap. They stayed quiet for a while, neither wanting to start a conversation. Tension grew thick, and she saw Naoi stiffen in front of her more and more by the minute; as if asking her to go away. Dissatisfied, Yuri smoothed her skirt—if only to distract herself from the uncomfortable silence that weighed down on them because of her unsolicited entry on his sphere of influence.

Silence.

She heaved a breath, released it; and that's when she decided to give up and _finally_ talk.

"Naoi."

He didn't look at her, pretending not to hear. Yuri walked more steps forward until she could see a glimpse of his face, and saw that he simply continued staring off at space, eyes unfocused and distracted. It's not like him to have that blank expression on his face—at least he had to smirk, or gloat, or spread out mischief by making fun of everything he saw around him, using his hypnotism to stupidly play around. But now, it's different; a _whole_ lot of different. That mischief was replaced by the bleak blankness of a soulless NPC. It's like the real Ayato Naoi had been permanently obliterated; only leaving an empty shell of a motionless body that didn't have more than one facial expression fixated on his face.

"Naoi?"

He still didn't look up. Yuri reddened—angered at herself for sounding so vulnerable in her shaky voice; embarrassed because of his ignorance as if making her feel stupid for coming here at all; and downright mortified at his pigheadedness. For three days he made everyone in the headquarters worried; wondering how long Naoi was going to take this. After a fight with Hinata, he sort of just disappeared off the face of the Earth; with only occasional trips to the headquarters for brief operational meetings. In the first few hours of his withdrawal, the SSS just thought that he needed time to let his boiling anger over Hinata settle down first—but when a day, a couple, a triad of days passed, they started to wonder how he was doing without the comforts of a home. He ignored every single one of them, even Otonashi, who tried to cheer him up by offering him a seat in a lunch table, just the two of them alone. Maybe he'd gone too far.

"Um, Naoi?"

He _still_ didn't budge, giving no indication he'd heard her at all. That empty look is _still_ plastered all over his face, and Yuri felt the urge to slap it off. She almost preferred seeing his smile, his smirk, his normal villainy, and even though she disliked seeing him hypnotize random members of the SSS, she would sacrifice Hinata's pride if only to see that mischief in his eyes again. Just…not this. Not this empty look. It scared her—almost as if Naoi was again the NPC they all knew back then, with no emotions, no heart, no humanity, just a doll who played by the rules.

"Naoi? Can you hear me?"

 _Still_ , after not a response, Yuri started to become paranoid and nervous inside, hands starting to grow cold and moisten with sweat. _Maybe…maybe he's become an NPC._ Ayato Naoi was a topnotch idiot with honors, yes. But no human, not even him, deserves to have a fate like Takamatsu—whose soul got devoured by a shadow and turned into a faceless humanoid, a robot forced to stay in this world for eternity, without ever a chance of finding his peace. Yuri tucked a strand of magenta hair behind her ear, looking up at the stars to distract the tingling that formed on her nose, tears rising into her eyes. _If Naoi became an NPC…_

She stiffened her voice onto her next words, replacing her softness with her commanding, leader-like one.

"Fine, if you don't talk, I'll just stay here and continue pestering you with my presence."

Naoi jerked his head to face her, narrowing his eyes. Finally, she saw anger flickering dangerously in those hazel eyes of his, as if they might catch fire any second now.

"Why are you here?"

Those were the first words he ever spoke in the last three days. It sort of made Yuri feel relief wash over her, knowing that this guy hadn't lost his mind yet; at least he showed her that he still had his emotions in him, and that he wasn't an NPC. Thank goodness—she had to sigh at that, releasing a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Although she felt his damaging words sting, her green eyes showing a glint of hurt, she cleverly hid it all with a sarcastic eye roll.

"To wish you a Merry Christmas."

Naoi dished out her sarcasm back to her just as perfectly, his blank eyes turning back to whatever he was looking at before. "Then do it fast and leave me alone."

Yuri's face creased at the onslaught of a frown. "You're going to regret saying that to me, Ayato Naoi."

"God _never_ regrets, Yuri Nakamura."

The girl laughed, and she let her hand land onto his stiff shoulder. _Finally,_ she got him to talk with his usual idiotic self. "Now _that's_ the Naoi I know."

"You know _nothing_ about me, Yuri Nakamura," he immediately bit back, full-fledged malice conquering his harsh tone. He disregarded the humor in her voice, shaking her comforting hand off of his shoulder. "Nothing."

That made her fall silent, her smiling face turning into a regretful one. This boy had issues, alright—and people with issues had to be approached cautiously, with precise care through choosing words. Anything might break him if she wasn't careful in conversing with him.

"Hey." She walked forward and faced him, although he still wasn't turning her way, blankly staring off at space. Yuri released a sigh, softening her voice. "I came here to say sorry for what Hinata did—"

"Then go back and tell him I don't forgive him," he cut off.

Yuri gulped at the malice of his tone. As a leader, she wasn't used to people interrupting her like that—usually they just wandered around with her orders placed on their backs. She wasn't really sure how to handle people who had the nerve to cut her short.

 _Especially_ Naoi.

"L-look, that wasn't entirely his fault. It's _your_ fault too, you know—"

"If you came here with intentions of helping," he interjected once again, "don't expect a thank you from me."

"As if I could hear that coming out of Your Jerkfuffness, Ayato."

He looked down at the ground, face stiffening, hands clenching, amber eyes burning with patience. "Leave me alone, Yurippe."

"Hey, I just came here! You didn't even say 'hello'—"

He jerked his head back to her the second time in five minutes, those spiteful eyes more angry than they'd ever been. " _Hello_ ," he seethed, teeth gritted. "Happy now?"

Yuri just put her hands behind her head, closing her eyes to feel a rush of cold wind that lifted her hair. "Huh. That's fast."

"What's fast?"

"Eh, I don't know, it was just so out of character for you to obey to me without questioning."

"What was I supposed to do? Argue with you and prolong this stupid conversation?"

"Kind of. That's where you excel, Naoi. Without stupid conversations with you in the headquarters, Hinata felt like he'd successfully Naoi-proofed the entire place and wouldn't stop gloating about it."

"That's tremendous comfort," he said with a sarcastic eye roll.

"You're very welcome."

They stayed silent for a while, Yuri refusing his command of sending her away. Tired of standing, she felt her feet involuntarily walk towards the railing of the rooftop, swinging her legs over it as she sat down. She looked back at the standing form of Naoi to urge him to do the same, tapping the empty space beside her for him to sit down too. After ignoring her, she rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Okay, I'll ask you this—just _what_ in the world is _wrong_ with you?"

He arched an eyebrow down at her, that blank expression still all over his face. "Don't act as if you don't know."

"Right, right, Hinata said some hurtful words at you and you became very emotional and decided to avoid the SSS for three whole days. Come on, everyone knows about _that_ ; I'm just asking _what's wrong_. I just…can't see the point of staying out here in three due days and fasting yourself just because of a small argument."

"A _small_ argument." He laughed bitterly, and just the sound of it made Yuri shiver with the amount of malice in it. Naoi can really be a villain if he wanted to—just like the villain that Yusa used to describe her. He finally gave in and sat down beside her, just the place where she'd urged him to sit down on. "The most terrible things often come in small doses, Yuri."

Yuri, again, placed a hand onto his shoulder, as lightly as she ever could—she didn't want to provoke him. "I'm your leader, Naoi. I can try to understand—"

" _You_ are _my_ leader?" That cold, empty laugh again. Like last time, she shrugged her hand off; and Yuri didn't understand it, but she kind of felt hurt for having her concern for him thrown in the trash just like that. "Who do you think you are, saying that in front of a god?"

"For the last time, you are _not_ god, Naoi." Yuri felt the signs of a smile pull into the muscles of her face. Slowly, she was succeeding in bringing the normal Naoi back to surface again—it was a nice sight to look at, no matter how mocking it may have looked. The important thing was, he was Naoi Ayato again.

"Can't we just get this over with? I know you don't usually trust me to keep your secrets with, but keeping it all to yourself will only make it worse. This meditation thingy you're doing, isolating yourself from all of us—it's not healthy. You can't push us away forever. You have to share what you feel to others so you're not the only one carrying all the burden of it."

He gave her a snide look, his golden eyes connecting with her cheerful emerald ones. "You're going all philosophical on me, Yurippe."

She returned the snide look, raising a superior eyebrow. "It's what makes me a leader." Then, looking up at the stars, a calm air washed over her face. "I'm not Otonashi. But if you don't feel like telling everything to him, you can tell them to me instead. I'll do my best to understand you."

He scoffed. "When pigs fly."

Yuri looked back at him, the calm expression on her face turning into exhaustion. She dramatically pressed her hands over her face, giving out a deadbeat sigh. "You know, you're making this difficult."

He smirked. "It's what makes me god."

It was her turn to scoff. "You're _not_ god. As a trained leader all these years, I have the ability to see right through ever member of my team—and that doesn't exclude you." She turned her head to look at him as if he was a difficult jigsaw puzzle yet to be arranged. "I'll figure you out—someday."

"I wouldn't let you in that easily, Yuri."

"If it would take me the hard way, then so be it."

He put his shaking head into his palm. "Your stubbornness needs serious help."

"Hey, I come prepared."

Naoi saw through her like she was a transparent glass. "Prepared, or outvoted?"

"Okay, busted," she admitted, flinging her hands onto the air. Back in the headquarters, all of them had agreed to send Yuri to try talking to him and bringing him out of the darkness of his solitude despite her protests. "But that's not the point, Naoi."

"This conversation _actually_ had a point?"

Her face contorted into one of genuine shock. "You didn't know?"

"Congratulations, you noticed."

Yuri frowned. "You like sarcasm, don't you?"

He turned to her in mock surprise. "How ever did you find out?"

"Okay, cut it out already."

"Don't you tell me to cut it, lovely."

She felt goosebumps rise with a vengeance onto her skin at the mention of the word. _Lovely_. The way it came out of his lips, the way the word perfectly charmed its path to match with his princely voice, the way he said it as if the word was made just for her and no one else. Suddenly she can't stop the firing of the words inside her head, resonating back and forth like a gong against her suddenly hollow skull.

He just called her lovely. He just called her lovely. He just called her lovely. He just called her—

 _Stop it._ Her face reddened, and she clutched down at the pleats of her skirt. She never felt this grateful towards the darkness of the night—thank goodness he can't see how her face suddenly turned as monstrously red as a honking huge tomato. _Stop feeling this way over him, stupid. Words are his specialty, remember? He's just mocking you. Don't tell me you actually like this feeling—oh please. You're too smart to fall for that._

Reddening like mad, she turned her head away from him, worried that her face was the precise color of her fuchsia hair. "D-Don't you _dare_ call me l-l-lovely, _idiot_."

He smirked. Oh, he dared.

"Lovely."

 _Oh, yeah?_ She thought. _Two can play at this game._ "Idiot."

"Lovely."

"Idiot."

"Lovely."

"Idiot."

"Lovely."

It's was Yuri's turn to slap her forehead with a palm. Neither wanted to give up. "Hinata's right. You _are_ a moron."

He smirked. "At least I don't cry over a pathetic clothespin."

"Hey, it isn't people's fault if they don't have hypnotic powers like you."

Naoi's yellow irises darkened, and he lowered his hat so that the shadow covered the sudden moistness filming his eyes. His mischievous tone disappeared, only to be replaced by a darker one. When Yuri looked at him, she noticed that the expression onto his face turned reflective, as if he was contemplating the fight he'd had with Hinata three days ago.

"It isn't my fault either," he said in barely above a whisper, "if _they_ start the fight."

Yuri put a hand onto his shoulder, firmer this time, refusing to have her concern thrown away again. "Naoi," she said, softening her tone as well. "Hinata regretted what he did. He didn't mean what he said to you, no matter how hurtful they might have been, the words just came out of his mouth. He said you're not the soulless human he thought you to be—he said he's sorry for saying that to you."

To Yuri's surprise, he didn't shake away her hand this time—so she set it more comfortably onto his shoulder, letting the weight of her hand rest on it more securely. The tension in Naoi's eyes slowly ebbed away as he contemplated her words. It seemed to comfort him, as her hand onto his shoulder felt his stiff demeanor to finally relax.

"You know," he started to say after seconds of silence, "you're…the only one who tried to come out here to talk to me."

Yuri looked up at him in a shocked kind of face, not expecting _those_ words to come out of his mouth. She stared at him, her own jade green eyes widening at the sight of him. She thought he was only capable of saying lightning-quick insults, offensive name-callings, and unpleasant remarks. But this one, this one was actually _empty_ of his usual sarcasm—gone was the scorn, the disdain, the impertinent mockery. Although his face was turned away in opposite direction from hers, she could see in the slight glint of his eyes his pure, genuine sincerity.

She gently lifted her hand from his shoulder, suddenly feeling timid and shy. She fiddled with her fingers anxiously, feeling self-conscious of herself with him just beside her.

"A…Ayato…," she started, unsure of what to say next in reply. "I-I—"

The moment was ruined when the cold wind brushed a feathery feeling that tickled her throat, rising up to her mouth, and bursting out of her as a hideous sneeze.

" _Achoo_! Argh!" Annoyed of the wind, she brusquely wiped off the slime from her nose with her sleeve before Naoi could turn around and laugh at her unsightly face. She pulled her knees to her chest, comfortably resting her chin as her arms wrapped herself around her. She rubbed her arms with her own hands, hoping to warm them from the cold. She turned to Naoi, who was shaking his head, obviously amused.

"What are _you_ laughing at?" Yuri bit back at him, her voice a little congested thanks to her suddenly blocked nostrils.

Naoi, unaffected by the spite of her voice, started to unbutton his black coat—still with that annoying smirk the size of Japan smacked dab in the middle all over his stupid face. "Delightful," he commented, a laugh rumbling all throughout from his body, the heat he emitted delicately mingling into hers. She started to feel comfortable talking with him, and she realized that…Naoi isn't _that_ bad as they all thought, after all. It was actually fun talking to him—and she never thought she'd actually enjoy a conversation with a blockheaded pinhead just like him.

She stared up at him, and Naoi smiled down when he realized she was gazing. She enjoyed getting lost into those amber eyes of his, the universe inside his golden orbs as lustrous as the night sky…

But then Yuri's eyes widened when she realized what she was thinking. She stubbornly jerked her head away from him, as redness touched her cheeks.

 _Stop staring at him, you idiot._

Naoi laughed at her pathetic attempts of trying to hide her own blushing. He finally held out his black gakuran, revealing the wrinkled white polo shirt lying underneath. When Yuri turned at him, she found herself _staring_ again. She couldn't help was handing her his coat, his face staring straight through the space in front of him—his dark green hair brushing his face as the wind breathed on him. He looked… _weird_ without his black coat…

She cleared her throat, distracting herself from her own thoughts before they got any wilder. "What are you doing?"

Naoi was unruffled, still blankly staring at the air in front of him. "Do you want it or not?"

Yuri took one look at the gakuran he was holding out to her, and she released a warm puff of air, condensing into a mini cloud of moist at the cold atmosphere around them. "I just want to make sure there aren't any explosives in there or something."

He looked at her with an impatient expression. "Do you _want_ it or not?"

Yuri sighed, and although she didn't want to, she snatched the coat from out of his hand. Her eyes were closed in a stubborn kind of way, as if trying to tell him that she didn't need anything whatsoever if it came from him. As she put the coat around her, however, she felt warmth wash over her like a tidal wave of instant relief. She snuggled, pulling the coat closer to her, inhaling in Naoi's handsome smell of cloves…

Her eyes snapped open from the comfort she was falling into. She was horrified at herself. So his perfume smelled like clove. And she actually _noticed_ it.

She kept herself focused, trying to turn off all of her senses and keeping them from ringing around so noisily into her ears.

 _Stop smelling his coat, idiot._

"You're very welcome, lovely," he said, breaking the silence with that sarcasm of his again. "Just don't get any ideas on telling anyone. I have a reputation to maintain."

She rolled her eyes. "Right, I was going to announce to the whole world how King Idiot turned into Prince Gentleman in a matter of seconds just because he handed me his grubby diaper-smelling coat to me."

He looked genuinely offended. "Excuse me, I do _not_ smell like diapers. I make sure to spray clove perfume on me for about every three hours—"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, Prince Gentleman of the Kingdom of Idiots."

"A _godly_ gentleman, lovely. A godly gentleman."

She frowned, tired of reminding him that _he wasn't god whatsoever._ "You know, that's really getting on my nerves."

He smirked. "Glad to know I'm not getting old on that."

A silence settled on them, and unlike earlier, this was a comfortable one. Both of them sank into the peace, neither of them saying a word, but either of them smiling as they stared up at the stars. Yuri clutched the coat closer to her, enjoying the warmth that seemed to be coming from Naoi himself. After several minutes more of stillness, Yuri turned to Naoi.

"Ayato?" she said, her quiet voice getting easily carried away by the stronger winds as the night deepened.

Naoi looked down at her. "What?"

"I think…we should get back to the headquarters." She tried to bring it gently to him, so that he doesn't back away so violently like he tried to shoo her away earlier. "What do you say?"

"I…I don't think I can face Hinata yet." His eyes darkened once again, just at the mere idea of it. "I'll let my anger subside a little, and wait till I'm ready to—"

"So what are you saying, you're going to mope around out here and avoid us for the rest of eternity?" Yuri stood up, hands still gasping the coat around her. She looked down at him, her eyes boring holes into his.

"I said I'm going to wait till I—"

"Well, I can't wait anymore!"

Yuri suddenly snatched the cap from his head, causing Naoi to turn around to look at her in shock.

 _No one dares snatches anything from god._

"Hey! What do you think are you doing?"

Yuri danced her way away from him, enjoying herself by twirling around with a singsong voice as she waved Naoi's cap around. "I got your _ca~ap_! I got your _ca~ap_!" she sang, teasing him.

Naoi stood up, walking towards her as if steam might burst out from his ears. _No one DARES tease me like that._ "Give it right back to me, Nakamura!"

She stubbornly put her hands onto her hips, sticking out her tongue at him. "Not until you follow me back to the headquarters."

Naoi walked towards her with his growing smirk, undeterred by her warning. "Come, now," he said, almost mockingly, "you're not _that_ stupid to dare play around with me, are you, Yurippe?"

She immediately saw what was coming next. She let her hand rest onto the gun she kept behind her back, and pulled it out, pointing it to Naoi. "Don't you dare use your hypnotism on me, or I'll shoot."

Nevertheless, he still hypnotized her. The next thing she knew, Naoi was there in front of her, laughing his head out as _he_ twirled around in the air _her_ gun. She looked at her hand which previously held the her gun, and was shocked to know that she, Yuri Nakamura, the fearless leader of the mighty Afterlife Battlefront, had actually fallen for one of the Prince of Idiots' stupid tricks again.

"Tsk, tsk," he taunted, a wide grin spreading out of his face a he straightened the hat that was now back on its usual place onto his head. "You're out of guns, Nakamura. You're defenseless now."

"Fine!" she said, anger taking over her face. She was defenseless, and _in front_ of an _idiot_. This was unacceptable. This idiot deserved a satisfying super kick in the face, marked in there forever like an angry red stamp.

And she was going to do just that.

She tackled him to the ground, knocking his cap out of his head.

"H-hey!" said Naoi, who tried pushing her scratching nails away from his face. "Woman, get _off_ of me!"

"I will _never_ be defenseless in your behalf, Naoi, and I'm going to make you learn that lesson the hard way! Guns don't matter—I'll just use my bare hands if I have to—"

They were interrupted by a loud voice.

"Fujimaki! Why are you _covering_ my eyes? I wanna see!"

It was Oyama.

"You don't need to see," said a horrified Fujimaki, his face a contortion of shock as he observed the two of them doing wild gestures on the floor. "It's x-rated!"

Yuri and Naoi stopped in their struggles of killing each other, their heads turning to the source of the voice. At the door stood Fujimaki, Oyama, Matsushita, and Otonashi, gaping at the ghastly sight of Yuri on top of a coatless Naoi, whose head lacked his cap and hair just as disheveled. Unwanted images flashed into their minds all the more when they saw Naoi's coat thrown away from Yuri's side.

"Y-Yurippe…" started Matsushita, unable to find the words. "What the _hell_ are you two doing?"

"Er…should we, uh, turn around and give 'em some privacy?" Otonashi asked awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

Yuri and Naoi looked at each other, reddening at the same time—but Naoi managed to turn his embarrassment into a smirk as soon as he realized that Yuri was getting more and more uncomfortable of their awkward position. Yuri staggered onto her feet, and started to brush some imaginary dirt off of her clothes to distract everyone else from her oh-so-crimson red face. She turned at the foursome at the door, who started to imitate Naoi's smirk to aggravate her reddening face even more.

"N-No! You g-g-g-guys, it's—it's n-n-not what you t-think we're _doing_!"

Oyama pushed away Fujimaki's hand from his face, and was disappointed to see that the action had stopped. "Aww! I didn't see!"

Yuri felt blood rush to her face, which threatened to burst any moment now. "There was _nothing_ to see, Oyama! You hear me? NOTHING!"

Naoi had gotten up from the floor, and he was straightening his hat when he started to approach her. There was a mischievous smirk onto his face, the usual.

"We got into a _little_ mischief, and, I must say, Yuri and I had _quite_ a pleasurable time."

"NO! Don't listen to him! WE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING OF THE SORT!" Yuri yelled, making dramatic arm gestures all over the air.

Fujimaki, Matsushita, and Otonashi only snickered, obviously not buying any of it. Oyama was genuinely confused, not understanding any of it. When Yuri turned back to look at Naoi, she saw him holding his head up high, a hand over his cap, his eyes closed, a self-satisfied smile playing on his lips. She just felt the urge to slap him onto the head so hard his skull would break and his brain would splatter all over the floor so she could mercilessly trample on it with every ounce of rage she has, but she thought better and tried to explain it to the newcomers.

"We were only—"

"—doing _something_ unspeakable," Fujimaki finished for her, releasing a smirk of his own. "Ooh, I wonder what _that_ something is, you naughty little kids."

She might as well have been boiling water in a madly squealing kettle. "Shut up, you idiots, or I'll dig those dirty brains out of your skulls!"

"Calm down, lovely," said Naoi, who had put his hand over her shoulder. "You're smarter than to let them get to your nerves."

She turned to look at him with as much spite as she could, her face having that anime effect where her eyes turn demonic and spiky teeth start to peek out of her angry mouth, towering over a suddenly tiny Naoi, the atmosphere around her turning an obnoxious red.

"Don't. Call. Me. Lovely. _You idiot_."

* * *

 **Kyaa, be mine, Naaaaoi-kuuuun! [Am I the only one in the whole world fangirling over him?] Oh, next up, NaoixShiina! Although it might take me longer…I promise I'll get it out as soon as I finish it. :)**

 **Your one and only tenshi xD,  
Rival A-chan**


	3. Cute and Defenseless (NaoiShiina)

**Kyaaa it's been forever. First off, thank you to** emmaroseduchemin **for reviewing the last two one-shots [I appreciate the gesture of you having to make sure you reviewed my story, arigato gozaimasu!] and faving and following this story, along with** ILoveToNya **and** hateful-fake **. You're such lovelies, I love you! xD My love for Naoi Ayato—one of Angel Beats' strongest characters for sure—is the motivation I wrote this, but you four (I haven't forgotten you,** Nayuri **xD) kept me going.**

 **Response to** Nayuri **: Wow, you're the first person who ever requested for me to write something. I really appreciate it, I feel like I'm loved! x3 Okay then, a NaoiYuri, coming right up! Although I can't promise since I'm currently planning on writing a NaoiOC 10-chapter fic and a HatsuneAyato one-shot (um would you like that instead? xP) I'll do my best to write a NaYuri for you. ;D**

 **So, on with it. Let's pretend that the SSS are bored around the time the shadows emerged and that Takamatsu's still alive and kicking. :)**

* * *

Cute and Defenseless  
a one-shot about Naoi Ayato and Shiina

 _You two are so...mesmerizingly cute. No puns intended._

* * *

It was a beautiful night, but it wasn't.

It was a stupid, pointless, and idiotically reckless night of utter stupidity to the maximum level, and not, not, NOTbeautiful at all. Why?

Because she was annoyed.

She was annoyed to the noisy crickets, the wet grass, the annoying bugs, the cramped space. She was annoyed to the thorns of the bushes that kept pricking her skin, having no choice but to hide there. She was annoyed to the stars above, twinkling like it was just another merry night in this merry afterlife world where there was absolutely _nothing_ to be merry about. She was annoyed to the idiotic jerk sitting just beside her, because it made her feel exposed to his mesmerizing eyes. Especially if it'sduring another one of the Devil's ridiculous operations. And more _especially_ so if the aforementioned Devil forced her to work with _him,_ out of all the other more decent people in this oh-so-merry world. And look at the stupidity that reckless boss of a pink-head came up with again—

Operation: SELNA.

 **S** overeignty and **E** galitarianism **L** urking in the **N** ihility of **A** varice.

It made no sense.

And nonsensical things annoyed her.

And when she was annoyed, she says it aloud.

"This is so _stupid_."

Her words were sharp against the silence of the night. At the sound of her voice, the boy beside her lightly lifted his eyes to look at her without moving his head. He had this blank expression in his eyes, bored even, as he arched an eyebrow in her direction as if he just realized she was there. The pale, electronic blue light that radiated from his walkie-talkie swept over his expressionless face, and it made him look even colder than he already was.

The two of them hid under the cramped space that the bushes could offer, forcing the two of them to each other as close as possible. So uncomfortably and irritatingly _close_ , in fact, that they couldn't move a muscle without pricking themselves on the thorny leaves. It was an awkward position, and Shiina had to face the left side and Naoi the opposite so they don't accidentally end up getting their heads bump against each other; which, absolutely, would be ridiculously awkward. Shiina pretended that she was calm about it all by keeping her eyes focused onto the field (being calm was, after all, the maxim of ninjas), but the boy beside her was wrecking her nerves that she was sweating so profusely _._ She didn't know if it was from the hot temperature of their shrouded area, or _him._

Ayato Naoi.

The thing that rattled her nerves the most was that _he_ was so calm about this stupid mission and _she_ was the complete opposite of it. She didn't know why she felt so rattled when it came to him when they rarely even talk. _That stupid fool—dare he make me feel this way!_

"Shut up," he said, simply, and returned his eyes back on to the screen of his walkie-talkie. "I'm fully aware of the stupidity of this. You needn't tell me."

Shiina threw her head back in surprise. _No one_ told her to shut up. No one. She so _desperately_ wanted to spit that out to him while strangling his neck. Her shock was immediately replaced by her former annoyance, slowly growing into frustration. She looked at him with horrified eyes, but Naoi already returned listening to the instructions being given out on the walkie-talkie, bored as ever, oblivious to the angry girl beside him. The way he'd stated it was point-blank—he said 'Shut up' like he was the boss around here or something.

" _You're_ telling _me_ to shut up?" she snapped, her voice clipped.

"For the sake of your slow-processing brain," said Naoi, not looking up from his walkie-talkie, "yes, I repeat, _I_ told _you_ to shut up."

It took her a moment for that to fully sink in. _Slow-processing brain,_ he said _._ He was calling her _slow_? Shiina clenched her fists. "You're not calling me stupid, are you?"

 _Patience_. Naoi released a patient sigh. "I guess you're just too stupid to understand what I mean that you _have_ to repeat it every single time."

She closed her eyes, _her_ patience depleting like a _time bomb_. She heaved a breath. Naturally, the volcanic calderas inside of Shiina riled up of more annoyance when he said that. It _annoyed_ her to the bone, growing to irritation, frustration, and finally, to _anger_. She knew that it was irrational to just be angry at him for that simple, childish little thing, but she'd been frustrated at Yuri these past few hours because of assigning her this stupid job. She'd been keeping her temper ever since—but, just like any volcano, this magmatic frustration had to go _somewhere_.

Because Yuri wasn't here to be mad at, Naoi would have no choice but to deal with it.

She lifted her eyelids to reveal a pair of menacing cat eyes, glowing against the dark, as rich and red as the blood that would soon cover her hungry hands.

" _Don't_ ," she drawled, threateningly landing a hand onto the handle of her blade snugly tucked into her side. She narrowed her eyes. "Don't make me force you to shut your mouth up."

Naoi took his eyes away from the walkie-talkie, and looked at her. But instead of the fear and intimidation that Shiina expected—rather, _hoped_ —to see in those eyes of his, she only saw…interest. As if _amused_ to see what happens next, as if being entertained by her warnings of stabbing him. No fear, just amusement, as if she were a circus clown and he was a critic.

 _That, too_. She hated when he made that kind of impression, not at all frightened or at least intimidated by her warning. She was annoyed of the fact that he was the only person she can't seem to unnerve.

Meanwhile, Naoi looked down at the hand on the knife. When he realized the gesture, he smirked, knowing that the pathetic attempt of trying to scare him was going in vain. Little girl trying to intimidate the Student Council Vice President Ayato Naoi? She's being foolish.

 _Who is this girl to think that she could challenge me?_

Inspired by this thought, he neared his face threateningly to hers, just for the fun of seeing how she'd react. Shiina instinctively had to back away to avoid getting any contact of him onto her face. But no matter how she tried, she couldn't be able to avoid the intensity of his eyes—because they were so extremely close, so close that she felt their separate body heat combine mix into one another's. Their noses were only mere centimeters away. A sudden movement forward…and they would kiss.

She felt blood rush toward her cheeks when _that_ thought reached her mind. Her face furiously blushed into a deep shade of red, scolding herself for even thinking of something as stupid as _that_. _Shiina? Naoi? Kiss?_ Those words would NEVER exist in the same sentence. Ever. But as they continued to stay in that awkward position, Shiina, against her will, observed that his eyes were a soulful shade of amber and that his smile was complacent. It was strangely...handsome. A rather… _attractive_ combination of golden hazels, forest greens, and seductive navies. His dark green hair even gently brushed against the cold skin of her cheek when the wind softly blew it to her direction.

Her heart thumped so loudly in her chest at the mere contact. That faint swipe of his hair onto her face made her breath hitch, like she was going to hyperventilate. Her hands gripped the grass under her, her anger now directed to _herself_. _What now, Eri?_ Are you going to flip over JUST because his hair touched your face?

It's just hair. Just stupid hair with a stupid shade of stupid green. So why is she making a big deal out of it? She'd been acting strange lately when it came around him. She even grew conscious of the school uniform blouse she was wearing, and the usually-unbuttoned last two buttons of her blouse were now fastened just because of _him._ She never did that just because of a boy, but now…

What is _wrong_ with her?

"Perhaps," he drawled, interrupting her thoughts, his eyes so strikingly amber that magnetized her to his. His voice so implausibly low and his warm breath tickling her cold cheeks, he continued, "Do you need my help to _make_ you shut up?"

The golden color of his eyes were slowly drowned in a glowing, crimson color. Contradictory to Naoi's claim, Shiina _actually_ had a sharp-processing brain—thank goodness for that—and she knew _exactly_ what attack was coming next, with the knowledge of how to counter it. She found it difficult to do, but she was able to force herself to look away before he started to speak sweet words she would soon unwantedly obey.

She knew for a fact that once you get lost in those red eyes of his, there was no chance of control once he'd already entered your mind. So the best way was to really avoid direct contact.

"Don't be foolish," she harshly snapped, once she was able to tear her eyes from him. Her mind was spinning in circles; face was flaming red. _So it's true. His eyes_ **were** _mesmerizing, just as Hinata says._ And she hated herself for noticing.

At first she really didn't believe that the art of hypnotism was real, and that it only worked on stupid people who aren't paying enough attention. But right now, she couldn't believe she almost fell for another one of his tricks if it wasn't for her sharpness; or else she'd end up crying over a clothespin, or something even more horrid.

"Y-Your stupid words won't work on me," she added, an edge into her teetering voice as she looked at the side, furiously trying to avoid those mischievous ruby eyes.

An impressed smile spread over Naoi's face, and he withdrew. His eyes were closed when he said, "Not bad. You know how to handle yourself around hypnotists, as well."

Shiina tried not to be too thrilled about his compliment. "I'm still getting used to handling stupid idiots—"

"Does it make you happy when I compliment you?" he suddenly cut off.

She buried her head in her scarf, trying to hide that stupid, stupid reddening. Where did _that_ question come from? "N—"

"Ah," he interjected again, grinning that it almost looked scary. "So it _does_ make you happy."

Shiina glared at him. "What makes you so sure?"

Naoi seemed pleased to be asked. "I'm a hypnotist, love. I know how the minds of people work. It's how I control them. The way you avoid my eyes when I try to catch contact with them; the way you stiffened when I praised you; the way you tried to hide a smile; the way you're blushing. All signs of stubborn delight over a compliment."

He reached out a hand to sweep over some blue strands of hair that hid her face from him. Shiina froze, her eyes widening when Naoi's fingers lightly touched her skin when he swept away some hair. "And," he continued, his voice dropping lower, in a seductive kind of tone, "the way your hair falls over your cheeks."

Shiina buried her head into her knees, which was pulled up to her chest; desperately trying to hide under her scarf. She didn't know if it was because of his handsome features, his handsome voice, his handsome smell of cloves, the handsome way he called her love—

 _Stop it._

Shiina was full on blushing now, her body sparked with this strange feeling…of electrifying… frivolity. Giddiness. His hand was just there, sweeping away azure tendrils of hair, fingers faintly touching the cold skin of her cheek. His hazel gaze was intensifying, a pair of yellow snake eyes in the sinister darkness, staring at her captured, cerise crimson orbs. But she forced herself to snap back to reality, slapping hand away from her face.

"Stop harassing me."

As Naoi withdrew his hand, Shiina felt a little disappointed as his touch left her skin. _What am I thinking?_ Shiina scolded herself, keeping the blood from rushing to her face. But Naoi, he was just there, watching, scrutinizing, and his grin grew wider, pleased by her reactions.

He snickered.

"Cute."

She couldn't take it anymore. Shiina Eri _wasn't_ trained to _blush,_ and she wasn't going to let a stupid boy think he was superior or something. She suddenly jerked her head up, and Naoi immediately withdrew himself to avoid getting bitten. You couldn't blame him. There was a murderous glint in her eyes when she said, "Shut. Up." This time, it was Shiina who was leaning her face to threaten Naoi. "And don't call me cute. It won't get you anywhere."

The smirk wasn't gone. "Not even your private dorm, Shiina-chan?"

The reddening ninja cleared her throat. "Do you _want_ me to kill you? Just tell me. Could do that a hundred times." She glared at him through the darkness, and neared her face to Naoi's even closer. "With pleasure."

"What?" said Naoi, mock surprise conquering his mirthful eyes. "Do you prefer calling me Ayato-kun?"

 _Yes! Yes, your Shiina-chan would love to call you Ayato-kun! It would be so cute!_

Ha-ha-ha. Like that would happen.

She held a tight grip of her own mind, hoping that redness wasn't conquering her face. Clearing her throat and withdrawing back to her former position, she said, "No, calling you _idiot_ is fine." She crossed her hands over her chest. "So shut up, _idiot_."

Naoi frowned, and returned to business by looking back at his walkie-talkie. "You know, you're the one who started this conversation. You should follow your own advice."

She glared at him with sharp, accusing eyes. "No, _you're_ the one who should do the following."

"No, you."

"No, you."

They were clearly growing annoyed of each other.

"I have a GREAT idea," piped in the static voice of Yuri, and the two of them broke their glowering war and suddenly spun their heads to look at the walkie-talkie in Naoi's hand. "Why don't you BOTH just shut up?"

Shiina's laugh was bitter. "Yeah, it's a _great_ idea for you to force me get stuck with this whining, self-obsessed idiot—"

"—with this whining, self-proclaimed ninja!"

They glared back at each other and forgot Yuri, a competition of whose stare was more deathly than the first.

"Who are you calling a whining idiot?" seethed Naoi, gripping tightly the walkie-talkie that the innocent thing was afraid might break.

"Who are _you_ calling a whining ninja?" growled Shiina, hoping she'd bore holes into his eyeballs.

"Aww, you two are _SO_ incredibly cute." Yuri laughed from the walkie-talkie. "Wish I could take a picture."

Naoi whipped his head to look at the walkie-talkie and whisper-shouted into it. "For the last time, Shiina and I are _never_ cute. I'll never like this stupid ninja. Don't call us cute or I'll—"

"Touchy," said Yuri, waving it off. "You're hurting Shiina's feelings, you know."

 _Am I really that transparent?_ Shiina asked herself. But she cleared her throat to cover the hurt from her face. "Just get on with it."

Yuri sighed from the other line, as if disappointed that she wasn't able to tease them any longer. They had a mission to accomplish, anyway. "Alright. This is the final roll call. Shiina, Naoi, you two set on your positions, undetected?"

Shiina and Naoi responded the same. "Affirmative."

Yuri nodded from the other line. "Takeyama-kun, status?"

"Hacking successful. The building's main power source is now infiltratable; password is changed into SELNA, all caps. Also, call me Chri—"

"Otonashi, Matsushita, Takamatsu, TK," Yuri interjected, "how are the traps?"

"Traps are set, Yurippe."

"Oyama, Fujimaki?"

"All the other NPCs inside the building in target had already gone out to witness the concert."

"Good. All we'll need now is a signal from Yusa—"

"Yurippe-san, do you read? The GirlDeMo had reached its highest level of excitement."

"Yes!" Yuri shouted, perhaps over-gleefully. "Operation, start!"

Shiina and Naoi looked at each other with dread. Both didn't want to go in there with the presence of the other—but they nodded, and finally got out of the bushes and started to run towards the old building.

The sooner this mission is accomplished, the sooner they'd leave each other alone.

* * *

 **Yep, I know, gone for three weeks, only to come up with this…fic. But I _did upload two other one-shots..._ would you mind reading them? I made sure they were long for satisfaction xD Gah, it's short. And rushed. And it didn't come out as I intended. AND Shiina and Naoi were OOC, I can't believe my horridity. Even though there's no such word. But if I'm going to ask you…among these three, which did you like the most? Personally I enjoyed writing Lovely Defenselessness [NaYuri] the best. :) **

**Um…reviews, onegai? My one-shots aren't** _ **that**_ **bad, are they? xD**

 **Your passionate writer,  
Rival Argentica**


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